Messi's brother out of house arrest on R1.5m bail

Buenos Aires - The older brother of Barcelona and Argentina star Lionel Messi has been released from house arrest after paying a €100 000 (R1.513 million) bond, Argentinian media said on Tuesday.

Matias Messi, 35, was sentenced to house arrest in his hometown in Rosario, 300km north of Buenos Aires, last week for possession of a gun.

The detention came after he was found in a drifting and blood-stained motorboat on November 30, apparently after hitting a sandbar. Police found a pistol hidden on board the boat.

It was the second time the star's brother had been arrested for possession of a firearm. The offence carries a jail sentence of between three-and-a-half and eight years.

The conditions of his bail mean that he can move freely around Argentina but cannot leave the country.